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Evansville at Missouri State, 7 p.m. Wednesday

EVANSVILLE — Think of it as KenPom on steroids.

Synergy Sports Tech is being used by every NBA and WNBA franchise as well as most college, Olympic and international teams. It’s a deep dive beyond the efficiency analytics that provides context for every type of play made offensively and defensively and both as a team and individually.

Not only that, within hours of the final buzzer, Synergy chops up video clips of each play and categorizes them for coaches to share with their players.

The University of Evansville men’s basketball program utilizes the product.

For the Aces or any team, it’s worth the $20 per month subscription. Head coach Walter McCarty and his staff can teach their players without being in the same room. It’s a trove of information that one can easily be lost in for hours. But unless it’s part of your job, you’re probably not going to pay that hefty fee.

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University of Evansville Head Coach Walter McCarty makes notes before his team takes on the University of Wisconsin-Green Bay Phoenix at Ford Center in Evansville, Ind., Saturday, Dec. 22, 2018. The Purple Aces defeated the Phoenix 80-75 in their last non-conference game of the season.(Photo: SAM OWENS/ COURIER & PRESS)

So, what is Synergy saying about UE (8-9, 2-2 Missouri Valley Conference) ahead of its road game 7 p.m. Wednesday at Missouri State (8-9, 2-2)?

Note that these numbers are only against Division I competition. They also exclude the Illinois and Xavier games, since neither provided an accurate depiction of where this team is at.

Offensively

At a glance, it lines up with what KenPom says: The Aces are below average.

Opposing teams have played almost exclusively man-to-man defense against the Aces. That’s the smart play as UE has been significantly better against the zone, which makes sense given that ball movement can be a real strength for this team. If others played strictly zone against UE, the Aces would be scoring 16 more points per game across 70 possessions.

Arguably the biggest talking point for McCarty this season has been playing with pace and getting out on the fast break. He has good reason to continue stressing that. The Aces’ transition offense has been good. They’re shooting 51.2 percent in up-tempo scenarios and only turning the ball over once every nine trips up the floor.

But the problem is fast-break chances are uncommon. They make up less than 16 percent of possessions while half-court situations comprise the rest. And the latter is why UE has been below average. It’s been held to 38.7 percent from the field with turnovers hovering around one of every five possessions.

Perhaps the oddest quirk of this team is that they’ve actually shot the ball better when contested. In catch-and-shoot opportunities, the Aces are hitting on just 30.9 percent of unguarded looks compared to 32.4 percent when defenders have a hand in their face. They’ve been a below-average jump shooting team that has struggled to hit shots when spotting up (31.3 percent) and around the basket (49.5, which is classified as "poor").

Individually, senior Marty Hill has graded out as UE’s most efficient player. The 6-foot-5 guard has been excellent in transition – specifically with the ball in his hands – and very good at catch-and-shoot opportunities. That lines up with McCarty wanting Hill to always be assertive and look to make plays, though he says the same about most of his players.

Other notables that pass the eye test: junior K.J. Riley is adept at cutting to the basket as well as – being a bigger-bodied guard – posting up smaller defenders. Graduate senior guard Shea Feehan’s strengths are as a pick-and-roll ball-handler and dribble-handoff situations, two common actions in UE’s half-court sets.

Defensively

Some may call it luck, but the results speak for themselves: The Aces have been outstanding on this end of the court.

They play man-to-man defense about 86 percent of the time while also sprinkling in some match-up zone. In man-to-man, they rank 44th nationally in allowing just 0.78 points per possession (overall average is 1.03). You can essentially name the type of play and Synergy says the Aces have defended it exceptionally well: spot-up, isolation, pick-and-roll, catch-and-shoot or against 3-pointers.

Their zone has been nearly just as effective at 0.84 points per trip. Teams have shot 40.4 percent against it compared to 37.2 against man-to-man defense. They’ve been able to take comfort into dropping into zone to save their legs with a short bench because the intensity level has seemingly remained the same.

It should come to little surprise that UE’s transition defense also stands out. Per KenPom, the team is ranked third-to-last in offensive rebounding. Opposing teams and media have commented throughout the season at how little this team tries to crash the boards and that’s by design. It’s not going to get beat in transition.

The luck factor has been this: Like the Aces, other teams are also not hitting open shots.

In fact, their “defense” when shooters are left open ranks in the top six percentile in allowing just 28.6 percent from the field. Take the Loyola game, for example, when they held the Ramblers to less than 50 points. McCarty even commented afterward that while they did play well defensively, his team also benefited greatly from missed open looks.

Individually, Riley has been UE’s best on-the-ball defender and is excellent at sticking to his man off screens or the pick-and-roll. Freshman guard Jawaun Newton has provided a boost off the bench as well as senior big man Dainius Chatkevicius, who has been sort of an unsung hero in the post.

All of the Aces’ players overall grade is at least ‘good’, according to Synergy.

On the Bears

The defense of Chatkevicius and others will be key against Missouri State, which is led by 6-8 junior center Tulio Da Silva.

The South Florida transfer is the reigning MVC Player and Newcomer of the Week after he averaged 22.5 points and 10.5 rebounds in a pair of wins last week on the road at Indiana State and Bradley. He’s been one of the most efficient players in the country and is capable of logging some big-time minutes.

Similar to UE, Missouri State is up-tempo and good in transition under first-year head coach Dana Ford (previously at Tennessee State). The Bears are playing considerably better on the offensive end of the floor. Defensively, they’ve struggled in transition and rank last in the country in allowing 41.8 percent from the perimeter.